[IfOnlyYouKnew]

Apple has a specific program to recycle used iPhones. There's a video floating around somewhere on their site about some robot they built for the task. I'm fairly certain they'll take your used Apple hardware for free at any store worldwide and might even do a better job recycling it than a generic deposit (although those may just pass it on to them anyway).

This program–the deposit–is strictly about increasing recycling quotas. They do have a refurb program but they'll actually pay you for hardware that can be used for that.